Doug Ashbury
Northern News Services

NNSL (Jan 20/99) - An Edmonton truck driver has been charged after an incident at the Mackenzie ice bridge earlier this month.

The 60-year-old man, driving and RTL Robinson Enterprises truck, was charged under the GNWT Motor Vehicle Act's large vehicle control regulations and the act's seasonal highway regulations, said Mark Schauerte, with GNWT Transportation, said.

The ticket was issued because the truck's weight was well over the posted limit, Schauerte said.

RTL Robinson Enterprises Ltd. Risk Manager Janet Robinson said the company did not authorize the crossing.

"He was driving an RTL truck but he did not have authorization to cross," she said.

The driver's actions are under review, she said. He is due to appear in court in Yellowknife Feb. 18.

If convicted, the man faces a fine up to $5,000.

Schauerte said the ice bridge sustained minor and temporary damage as a result of the Jan. 4 crossing. Crews had to repair the damage.

On Jan. 4, the posted maximum load limit was 4,000 kilograms.

And the ferry was running, Schauerte added.

The truck alleged to have illegally crossed was a super B-train (a tractor and two trailers) carrying diesel fuel.

Schauerte estimated a B-train filled with diesel weighs about 62,500 kilograms.

Soon after the truck crossed, the limit was raised to 14,000 kilograms. But this is still well below the weight of the truck in question, he said.

As of last Saturday, the GNWT's transportation department had raised the ice bridge's load limit to 64,000 kilograms.

The ice bridge is "Yellowknife's lifeline," Schauerte said. Maintaining the crossing is very important to many businesses in the NWT's capital, he said.

"We don't want that bridge damaged. Businesses and individuals rely heavily on that crossing."

Delays in getting the bridge operational have a "financial impact," he said.

On truck volumes, Schauerte said numbers were down in 1998 compared to 1997, by as many as 1,500 trucks -- from 2,900 to about 1,400.

Despite the decline in the number of trucks crossing, other indicators, such as permits, are up, he said.

There could be fewer trucks but their volumes could be up.

On future volumes, Schauerte said it will depend on what happens in the mining sector, specifically with the proposed Diavik diamond mine and the price of gold.